Trussville, Alabama · Trussville Gas & Water

Trussville's water is hard everywhere — and low in disinfection byproducts.

Both of those come from the same report, and from the same cause. Trussville pumps from eight wells in limestone. That is why the water measures 8.9 grains hard across the whole system, and it is also why its trihalomethanes land below the lowest figure Central Alabama Water published.

Bedded limestone outcrop in north-central Alabama hardwood forest.

Where the hardness comes from Eight wells in limestone and chert. Water held in carbonate rock dissolves the stone it sits in, and that is the entire reason Trussville reads 8.9 grains.

From the utility's report

The numbers.

Trussville Gas & Water serves about 12,950 connections, PWSID AL0000761, entirely from groundwater — eight wells drawing on the Tuscumbia-Fort Payne chert and Bangor limestone aquifers. Every gallon on the system comes from those wells, which is why one number covers the whole town.

What	Trussville publishes	Central Alabama Water, for comparison	Limit
Total hardness	152 mg/L · 8.9 gpg	38–224 mg/L · 2.2–13.1 gpg	No limit — aesthetic
Trihalomethanes (TTHM)	ND – 7.5 ppb	11.4 – 26.0 ppb	80 ppb
Haloacetic acids (HAA5)	Non-detect	11.7 – 34.3 ppb	60 ppb
Chlorine residual	1.01 – 1.68 ppm	—	4.0 ppm MRDL

Read the first row twice. The hardness column is the one that changed. Trussville publishes a single figure because it has a single kind of source; Central Alabama Water publishes a range that reaches from slightly hard at one end of its system to very hard at the other. Trussville is hard and predictable. Central Alabama Water is variable, and variable is the harder thing to plan around.

The byproduct rows come from the same cause in reverse. Trihalomethanes form when chlorine meets organic matter, and groundwater that has sat in rock for a long time carries very little of it. Trussville's numbers are low for a structural reason rather than a treatment one — there was hardly anything there for the chlorine to react with. Central Alabama Water draws from rivers and lakes, where there is, and at a published high of 26.0 ppb against the same limit of 80 it stays comfortably inside the standard.

What it means for your house

Softening starts the conversation here.

A water softener isn't automatic in Birmingham. Hardness on Central Alabama Water varies by source and location — the 2026 report spans 2.2 to 13.1 grains, slightly hard at one end of the system and very hard at the other — so there the answer depends on your address, and we test before recommending one. Trussville is more predictable. One source, one published figure, and that figure sits in the hard band.

8.9 grains is above the threshold where softening pays. The line where it starts delivering noticeable improvement in soap performance, spotting and appliance life is around 7. Trussville sits above it on one number for the whole system rather than a range.
Scale is the likely complaint here, ahead of taste. Spotting on glass, film on fixtures, shortened element life in a water heater. If you have a tankless heater, check its warranty language — some manufacturers condition coverage on water hardness.
Heavy carbon for byproducts is optional here. At ND to 7.5 ppb the report already puts that number near the floor, so the budget usually does more work elsewhere in the house.
An under-sink RO still earns its place. Here the case is hardness and taste at the drinking tap rather than byproducts — and because softened water tastes different to some people, RO gives you one faucet the softener's taste never reaches.

One measurement still comes first. 8.9 grains is the system figure from the utility's report. Your house has its own plumbing, its own water heater and its own history, so we test your home's water before we size anything. If the number is low, we'll tell you. If the hardness level and your goals justify softening, we'll size the system accordingly.

Common questions

Trussville water, answered.

How hard is Trussville water?

Trussville Gas & Water publishes a total hardness of 152 mg/L, which is 8.9 grains per gallon. That falls in the hard band on the standard US classification, and it applies system-wide, because every drop comes from the same eight wells in limestone and chert. Central Alabama Water (formerly Birmingham Water Works) publishes a range instead — 38 to 224 mg/L, about 2.2 to 13.1 grains, in its 2026 Annual Water Quality Report — so on that system your figure depends on which source reaches your address.

Do I need a water softener in Trussville?

More often here than on most systems we work on. Softening generally starts earning its cost above about 7 grains per gallon, and Trussville's published figure is 8.9 system-wide. We still test at your tap first, because the system figure becomes your figure only once it is measured. What Trussville gives you is predictability: on Central Alabama Water the published hardness spans 2.2 to 13.1 grains, so there the answer really does depend on the address.

Does Trussville water have high chlorine byproducts?

They run low. The utility reports trihalomethanes from non-detect to 7.5 parts per billion against a limit of 80, and haloacetic acids at non-detect — below the lowest figures Central Alabama Water published for 2025. Groundwater carries very little of the organic matter that chlorine reacts with to form these byproducts, which is the structural reason a well system tends to report lower numbers than a river system.

Where does Trussville get its water?

Eight wells, drawing on the Tuscumbia-Fort Payne chert and Bangor limestone aquifers. The system serves roughly 12,950 connections, and every gallon of it is groundwater. That is unusual in this metro, and it is the reason for both the hardness and the low byproduct figures.

Do you install in Trussville?

Yes. Trussville is inside our everyday service ring, so we handle under-sink reverse osmosis, whole-home systems and ongoing filter service there, down to a single cartridge change. Our full service area is here.

Find out where your house actually sits

8.9 grains is the system figure. We'll mail you a free test strip, so your own number is in hand before a softener gets sized.

Request a free test